“We still have those accounts to go over, Mr. Hines.” Scratch gritted his teeth, wishing he could punch Axe’s nose into oblivion. Instead, he decided on opening his door and allowing the agents in.
“We weren’t done with our conversation.”
Scratch closed the door as calmly as he could.
“I thought we were. You lose, I don’t answer, and you get on your way.”
“I want to know why the files you have been giving Monica aren’t the ones we need. You have something else to hide?”
“I’ve given her everything you’ve asked for. You’ve gone through all the files with a fine tooth comb. You can’t find anything wrong because there is nothing there to hide. Period. Get over it, pack up, and go home.”
“Not that easy, and I’m tired of you talking to me like you have an iron jaw.”
“I’m tired of being harassed. I’ve given you everything I can. You know what? From this point on, I believe you need to deal with the company lawyer. I guess my cooperation isn’t what you need. I’m sorry about that. Truly I am,” Scratch added coldly. Those were words no cop wanted hear, and Scratch could see that Axe wasn’t any different. He swallowed heavily, a muscle ticking in his jaw. Scratch knew this wouldn’t go over well with Eagle, but it would at least buy him time.
“You don’t really want a lawyer, do you? You can still deal with me directly,” Monica said, keeping up with her good cop/bad cop. But Scratch needed her out of it too now.
“No, the lawyer works. You have any questions you can go through my boss and the lawyers. Have a good day, agents.” With that, Scratch went to his desk. Axe slammed out the door, with Monica behind. Scratch forced himself not to watch her exit. He had no doubt that Axe would be heading straight to Eagle’s office. But Eagle had two options, back up his employee and look like a legitimate businessman, or find some way to circumnavigate the lawyer. Either way, Scratch had bought some time.
He just hoped it was enough. Shit wasn’t going the way he thought it should be at all.
Chapter 16
There was no surprise when he got the call. Eagle summoned Scratch to his office no less than thirty minutes after his brush with Axe. His adrenaline was still pumping and his thoughts were still racing. It was the worst time for a meeting, but he had no choice. Might as well get the bullshit over with.
Scratch left his office and headed to meet his boss. He felt like he was walking into his execution without the preamble of having his last rights read to him. The elevator ride seemed to take forever, but he used that time to assemble some sense of calm. If he walked into Eagle’s office all fired up, there was no telling what would happen.
The doorway to the office was ajar, and Scratch knocked lightly before entering. Eagle was seated behind his desk and waved Scratch in. “Please close the door behind you.”
Scratch did as he was told and then took a seat across from his nemesis. They sat in silence as Eagle continued to tap away at his keyboard, ignoring Scratch as if he hadn’t been the one to call the damn meeting in the first place. The longer he waited, the more Scratch felt his calm slipping away.
“So, it seems as if you have managed to upset our friends from the agency,” Eagle started as he graced Scratch with his attention.
“That was bound to happen,” Scratch mumbled. He wasn’t going to let Eagle lead him into a confession. If he knew something, he could address it directly.
“Well I suppose, but you didn’t help matters any. Did you? This should have been a simple exercise in covering our tracks. Instead, you’ve turned it into a clusterfuck,” Eagle said tersely.
That triggered Scratch’s irritation with the entire ordeal.
“I don’t understand how you want to blame me. You know I had nothing to do with TopSec, yet you put the responsibility in my hands to fix whatever mess happened on that contract. I was working blind, but gave them enough to confuse them. I don’t see what else I could have done,” he argued.
Eagle’s eyes flared with anger, and his jaws tightened. “You have some chip on your shoulder, don’t you? It’s not about what you could have done. It’s about what you shouldn’t have done.”
With that, Eagle grabbed a remote and pressed play, motioning towards the 52-inch LCD T.V. mounted over the table he used to hold larger meetings in his office. When a vision of Monica entering his office displayed across the screen, a feeling of dread tightened Scratch’s throat, and settled like a lump in his stomach. He knew what was coming next.
“Turn it off,” Scratch barked out. He pried his eyes away from the screen, where they were now locked into a passionate embrace. He remembered thinking it was a terrible move at the time, but not caring enough to stop. Not able to stop.
He felt sick for so many reasons. The thought of Eagle seeing Monica that way was enough to make him want to vomit. Then he wanted to kill the son of a bitch for having it in the first place. Then he felt like an ass because he had known better. Monica’s words came back to haunt him. She was right; he had taken her down in his quicksand.
“You don’t call any shots around here, Vikhrov,” Eagle sneered, saying the name as if it were a curse. Scratch tried not to flinch when he heard it, not wanting to show any reaction. Eagle was like a wild animal when it came to sensing fear and using it against you. “You don’t call any shots period. You may be free in a very liberal sense of the word, but ultimately you answer to me.”
Scratch seethed with rage as Eagle continued to let the video play. The guttural sounds of their reckless encounter filled the room, amplified by the acoustics of the mostly glass office. He glared at the man who was determined to torture him, imagining all the ways he could end things. His bare hands could do the job.
“See you really ‘screwed the pooch’ on this one,” Eagle taunted. “She might be a pretty little bitch, but not worth the trouble or the expense it’s going to take to fix this shit. And trust me, this will be fixed.”
There were so many things Scratch wanted to say and do. He ignored the insult toward Monica, but his fists were itching to connect with the older man’s face. He wanted to pummel him until blood sprayed and bones crunched under the force of his blows.
“Since you’re brain has apparently taken off on some sort of vacation, I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen. Now that you’re little girlfriend and her idiot partner have gone digging into your past, your real past, they’ve got to go.”
The words hit Scratch like a brick to the head. “They’ve got to go? What the hell does that mean?”
“It means that they know too much. What would it take for them to start looking into all of my employees? How many would they find with identities that were no older than a toddler’s? Names that I’ve paid a lot to establish, people with pasts no one needs to know about. Then what?”
“So what do you have planned?” Scratch’s voice conveyed a calm that he did not possess, but he needed to know how far Eagle was going to take this one.
“If they’re lucky, they’ll lose their jobs, but if they keep pushing? Well, I can’t assume that things will end well. I’m sure Monica understands that better than anyone.”
At the moment Eagle’s last words were uttered, a keening moan resounded from the screen. That was it. Scratch lunged for the remote, grabbing it and hitting the off button. As Eagle made to snatch the device back, Scratch dropped it and grabbed Eagle by the collar of his blazer, lifting the man out of his seat a few inches.
“Nothing happens to her,” he hissed. “Do you understand? Not one hair on her head is touched, not her job. Nothing!”
For the first time since he’d known the man, Scratch saw a glimpse of uncertainty in Eagle’s eyes. Or was it fear? The man covered his hands as he tried to pry them away.
“And just what do you think you’re going to do?” The words were uttered harshly, but Eagle still faltered at the end.
“I’m not going to let you back me into the fucking corner anymore. You gave me this fucking assignm
ent because you wanted me to fail. You wouldn’t have a problem if the feds carted me away, allowing me to take the fall for you, yeah? Well, I’ve done that dance before, and I’m never doing it again. I’ll find another way to fix it.” Scratch shoved the man back into his chair as he turned to leave. He may have gone too far, but it didn’t matter anymore. Things were already out of control; this was just another layer to it.
The loud bellow of Eagle’s laughter filled the air and stopped Scratch short.
“And just what the hell do you think you can do? Maybe you don’t quite understand. This is out of your hands now. How do you think I was able to remove you from jail, and have your sentenced cleared? Do you think I just waltzed in and handed the guard a few bills and they turned the other way? How do you think this all came about? Why do you think Monica’s brother lost his job? The people who helped to make that happen will do what they see fit as far as fixing this shit.”
“Dammit!” Scratch pounded his fist on the desk in frustration. “So this is all just some twisted game to you?”
“No. This is business to me. I’m building a billion dollar empire here, and there are people who have a vested interest in making that happen. Monica and her partner are just collateral damage—insignificant in the bigger picture. I groomed you to be part of that bigger picture, but if you want to throw it all away for a little pussy then you can become a casualty too.”
The threat was very clear. Scratch straightened his back and contemplated strangling Eagle right then and there.
“Look, George,” Eagle said resignedly. “You have been under a lot of pressure lately. Take a few days to clear your head. As it stands, we haven’t committed any crimes. You did provide them with adequate information, and I know they will never find what they are looking for, and even if they do, my people will make it disappear.”
Scratch nodded in understanding. He had a choice. Play the game, as he had been, or he would be another problem that disappeared. He left the office without sparing that calculating piece of shit another glance. Eagle was already dead to him.
Monica. He had to talk to her, at least hear her voice. The tape would have to wait, he wouldn’t tell her about that over the phone, but he needed to warn her and find out just how far Axe had gone with the information on his changed identity.
Forgoing his office, he headed for the garage. There was no point in going back to work. No point in pretending anymore. There was nothing in that building that he needed, and he highly doubted he would ever see it again. Not with all the threats that had just been thrown around Eagle’s office.
He waited until he was safely encased in the leather seats of his CLK before he pulled out his cell, waiting for a few beats before he dialed her number.
“Hey,” she answered breathlessly after three rings.
“Did I catch you at a bad time?” Scratch was hoping that she wasn’t with her partner-slash-asshole.
“No, no. I was just pulling on some clothes after a shower,” she replied, not realizing that she was turning him on. Scratch brushed those thoughts away. Too much was going on to get sidetracked.
“You ditched Axe, I see.”
“Hell yeah. I wanted to beat his ass for what he did today. There was no reason for him to look into you, aside from his unwarranted jealousy. That was highly unprofessional, and I advised him to think about that before he takes that information to our superiors. I don’t know if he will listen, but I tried my best. I’m going to call my brother and try to get him to talk some sense into him.” She sounded flustered, and he hated that. Hated that he was the one causing her so much trouble.
“Yeah, well like I said. Changing my name isn’t a crime in itself. Unless the info that he has on me ties me to a crime, your superiors will probably look at him like a lunatic for wasting agency time and money.”
“You think?” The hope in her voice was too much. He felt guiltier by the second.
“I’m sure of it.”
“Zio,” she sighed. “This is such a mess.”
“It is, but things will work themselves out.”
“I’m not so sure about that. I don’t like this Zio. What you’re involved in—” Scratch cut her off before she could continue. He didn’t want her saying anything incriminating. Secure line, or not.
“Hey, let’s not talk about that now. I called to see how you were holding up. You were pretty upset the last time I saw you.”
“I’m ok, now. I was pissed with Axe. This is about more than just the case. He’s had a thing for me for a while now and thinks that gives him the right to pry into my life. Somehow, he knows I’m interested in you and he’s letting his emotions rule. He could jeopardize the entire case, or get us kicked off and reassigned to some busywork if he isn’t careful.”
Scratch closed his eyes as guilt hit him hard. He knew they would be lucky if busy work was their ultimate punishment for getting tangled up in the Hawk Global web of lies.
“Busy work isn’t so bad. It would mean we have more time to spend together,” he said, hedging for her reaction to them solidifying things. Would she be open to the possibility that he was considering? He needed to be honest with her and tell her everything. What were his options?
“Stop trying to flatter me,” she balked. “You’re probably going to get tired of me soon enough, playboy.”
“I highly doubt that,” Scratch disagreed. “As a matter of fact, I miss your face already.”
“Yeah, I kinda miss yours too. Just a little,” she teased.
“So meet me tonight,” he suggested. His voice was hoarse from emotion and uncertainty. “At the hotel.”
“Yes.”
“That was easy.” They both laughed, and he flirted with her enough to get her hot and bothered before he ended the call. Monica may have been easy, but what he had to do next wouldn’t be.
Chapter 17
Scratch took the trip home on rails. By the time he got to his street, he knew he’d broken records getting there, but he frankly didn’t give a shit. Only thing that kept going through his head was the footage of him and Monica together, with Eagle’s words ringing loud in his head. He knew better. He fucking knew better than to take her in that fucking office. Knew that Eagle kept an eye on anything they did in the building. It was why he, Jack, and Glitch made sure to make the office all about business. They had protection on him, it didn’t matter what Eagle tried to do. Home they were free.
He was a fucking idiot!
Now things were spiraling out of control. They had to make some changes and quick. He slammed his way out of the car, ran to the entrance of his building, and took the stairs three at a time. When he couldn’t get his hand steady enough to get into his apartment, he kicked in the door. He slid down the frame, nearly in tears he was so fucking pissed. With one, powerful force, he punched the doorframe, again and again, until he felt his knuckles bleeding. The release of anger didn’t do enough to make him feel better, so he got to his feet and stalked into his place with murder on his mind. Thousands of dollars he spent on his entertainment center went crashing down as he ripped the TV from the wall and watched it smash on the floor. His blood dripped on the floor as he pulled the video case around it down too.
With a cruel smile, he took two steps to his sofa and kicked it as hard as he could. He was laughing as he punched his way through walls, smashed plates and glasses, and tore appliances out the beams. He went through his house like a whirlwind, breathing heavy, and hollering in defeat.
“What the fuck?” he heard Jack yell, but he ignored him. The pain felt good, the anger familiar. He needed it, or he was going to lose his fucking mind. He ripped the medicine cabinet from the wall and stomped it into the ground, over and over.
“What happened?” Glitch asked, bold enough to block the bathroom door. Scratch looked through him and barreled out. No slouch, Glitch took the pressure, and slung him into the adjoining wall. Scratch roared as he got his feet under him and speared toward Glitch. Jack was there, fl
ipping him in mid motion. The air knocked out of his lungs, Scratch gasped, getting to his feet.
“Calm the fuck down,” Araceli screamed, throwing a book at him. Scratch blinked, looking down at the heavy phone book that was now open on the floor.
“You touch my man again and I’ll gut you,” she hissed at him.
“She probably would,” Glitch added. Scratch knew what they were trying to do, but he couldn’t laugh. He couldn’t calm down. He needed to break something. Anything. Preferably Eagle’s face, but right now his possessions worked.
SCRATCH (Corporate Hitman Book 2) Page 11
